Fig. 6. Estimating gains of specificity vs loss of sensitivity in multi-probe assays.

A The mean and confidence intervals for the ratio of intact to total proviruses observed during Q4PCR measurements across all n = 35 longitudinal time points from N = 10 PWH. B Simulating theoretical observed decay given gains in specificity by reducing f (Methods) for 2, 3, and 4 probes. The mean decay (dashed lines) increasingly overlaps with the true decay (solid tan line, identical in each panel) as probes are added. However, additional probes result in fewer detected sequences (see A), and confidence interval around the mean decay (shaded area) broadens vastly for more probes.